Superconducting articles, and methods for forming and using same

Abstract

A superconducting tape is disclosed, including a substrate having a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface, the substrate including a plurality of indicia provided on the first surface spaced apart along a length of the substrate; and a superconductor layer overlying the second surface. Also disclosed are components incorporating superconducting tapes, methods for manufacturing same, and methods for using same.

1. A superconducting article, comprising:
 a substrate having a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface, the substrate including a plurality of indicia provided on the first surface spaced apart along a length of the substrate at a constant pitch; and 
 a superconductor layer overlying the second surface. 
 
   
   
     2. The superconductor article of  claim 1 , wherein the article is a superconducting tape. 
   
   
     3. The superconducting article of  claim 2 , wherein the substrate has an aspect ratio of not less than 10 3 . 
   
   
     4. The superconducting article of  claim 2 , wherein the substrate baa an aspect ratio of not less than 10 4 . 
   
   
     5. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , wherein the constant pitch is within a range of about 0.5 m to 100 m. 
   
   
     6. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , wherein the indicia are spaced apart along substantially the entire length of the substrate. 
   
   
     7. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , wherein the indicia are preset only along the first surface, and do not extend into the second surface. 
   
   
     8. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , wherein the indicia are made by at least one process from the group consisting of: laser scribing, mechanical etching, chemical etching, ink printing, plasma etching, or ion beam etching. 
   
   
     9. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , wherein the indicia are made by a material subtractive process such that the indicia comprise recesses in the first surface. 
   
   
     10. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , wherein each indicia comprises an indicia set, each indicia set including position identifier. 
   
   
     11. The superconducting article of  claim 10 , wherein the position identifier comprises a bar code. 
   
   
     12. The superconducting article of  claim 10 , wherein the position identifier includes a 2-dimensional pattern. 
   
   
     13. The superconducting article of  claim 10 , wherein the position identifier comprises an alphanumeric code. 
   
   
     14. A superconducting article, comprising:
 a substrate having a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface, the substrate including a plurality of indicia provided on the first surface spaced apart along a length of the substrate, each indicia comprising an indicia set including a unique position identifier; and 
 a superconductor layer overlying the second surface. 
 
   
   
     15. The superconducting article of  claim 10 , wherein each indicia set further includes a fiducial for positioning the article. 
   
   
     16. The superconducting article of  claim 15 , wherein the fiducial is adapted for detection by an optical imaging system. 
   
   
     17. The superconducting article of  claim 16 , wherein the fiducial comprises a marking consisting of at least one of the following shapes: a star, concentric circles, and a crosshair. 
   
   
     18. The superconducting article of  claim 10 , wherein each indicia set further includes a lot identifier. 
   
   
     19. The superconducting article of  claim 18 , wherein the lot identifier includes manufacturing or processing date data. 
   
   
     20. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , wherein the superconductor layer comprises a high temperature superconductor material, having a critical temperature T c  not less than about 77 K. 
   
   
     21. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , wherein the superconductor material comprises REBa 2 Cu 3 O 7−x , wherein RE is a rare earth element. 
   
   
     22. The superconducting article of  claim 21 , wherein the superconductor material comprises YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7 . 
   
   
     23. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , further comprising a buffer layer provided between the superconductor layer and the substrate. 
   
   
     24. The superconductor article of  claim 23 , wherein the buffer layer includes at least one buffer film, the buffer film comprising a biaxially textured material having generally aligned crystals both in-plane and out-of-plane of the film. 
   
   
     25. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , further comprising a noble metal layer overlying the superconductor layer. 
   
   
     26. The superconducting article of  claim 25 , wherein the noble metal layer comprises silver. 
   
   
     27. The superconducting article of  claim 1 , wherein the article is a power device comprising a superconductive tape, the superconductive tape comprising said substrate and said superconductive layer. 
   
   
     28. The superconducting article of  claim 27 , wherein the power device is a power cable, said power cable comprising a plurality of superconductive tapes. 
   
   
     29. The superconducting article of  claim 28 , further comprising a conduit for passage of coolant fluid. 
   
   
     30. The superconducting article of  claim 29 , wherein the superconductive tapes are wrapped around the conduit. 
   
   
     31. The superconducting article of  claim 28 , wherein the power cable comprises a power transmission cable. 
   
   
     32. The superconducting article of  claim 28 , wherein the power cable comprises a power distribution cable. 
   
   
     33. The superconducting article of  claim 27 , wherein the power device is a power transformer, the power transformer comprising a primary winding and a secondary winding, wherein at least one of the primary winding and secondary winding is comprised of said superconductive tape. 
   
   
     34. The superconducting article of  claim 33 , wherein the secondary winding has a fewer number of windings than the primary winding, for reducing voltage. 
   
   
     35. The superconducting article of  claim 33 , wherein the primary winding has a fewer number of windings than the secondary winding, for increasing voltage. 
   
   
     36. The superconducting article of  claim 27 , wherein the power device is a power generator, the power generator comprising a shaft coupled to a rotor comprising electromagnets containing rotor coils, and a stator comprising a conductive winding surrounding the rotor, wherein at least one of the winding and the rotor coils comprises said superconductive tape.